The United States has increased its earnings from trade with China compared to previous periods.
Posted by Badlands Media, Checked
- Sources
- 3 contradict2 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 75%
Badlands MediaOct 15, 2026
The sources show the US running a large goods trade deficit with China, not earning money from it, and US exports to China fell in 2025 and early 2026. The deficit has narrowed, so the US is losing less, but that is not an increase in earnings.
What was said
… I always tell him. No, he's a great guy, though. We had the, the President of China last week, and people said, Oh, why are you doing that? I'm doing that because we get a long distance. You know, we're doing great with China. We make a lot of money with China. We used to lose a lot of money with China. We make a lot of money with China, and China respects us, too. He doesn't come to a country, believe me. He doesn't come to a country. He doesn't fly in an airplane for 21 hours unless he respects the president of a country or the country itself. …
Badlands Media · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. US exports to China fell 25.8% in 2025 and another 1% in the first half of 2026, per CRS, which runs against the claim that US earnings from China rose.[2][6]
Contradicts. Census data shows a goods trade deficit with China of about $109.6 billion for January through August 2026, with imports far exceeding exports every month, which contradicts the post's assertion that the US 'makes a lot of money' with China.[3]
Supports. The bilateral deficit with China narrowed: USTR reports it fell 32% in 2025, and Reuters reports the April 2026 goods deficit with China decreased $2.6 billion to $12.0 billion. This is a smaller loss, not higher earnings.[1][4]
Context. Analysts note that the overall trade deficit has not durably shrunk and that tariffs have not reduced US-China trade imbalances, so the narrowing is partial and modest.[5][7]
Sources
7 sources: 1 fact-checker, 4 primary, 2 not rated
- 1Record petroleum exports help to shrink US trade deficit in ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2congress.gov › crs-product › IF11284Congress.govcongress.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 3Trade in Goods with China Available years: 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022census.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 4THE PRESIDENT'S 2026 TRADE POLICY AGENDAustr.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 52026 US-China Fall Annual Economic Reportanderson.ucla.edu · primary source · cited for: context
- 6The U.S.-China Relationship: A New Equilibrium | J.P. Morganjpmorgan.com · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 7Transshipment Crackdowns Won't Fix the U.S.-China ...csis.org · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post